On a day when the home crowd at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium arrived expecting a routine march into the last 16, India’s leading men’s singles hope Lakshya Sen fell for a 73-minute Round of 32 exit at the BWF World Championships here on Wednesday.
Sen, who came into the tournament seeking to replicate his previous podium exploits, started aggressively. The 14th seed, who won bronze at this event in 2021, was stunned 19-21, 21-19, 21-17 by 18-year-old American sensation Garret Tan in a physical match that saw dives, falls, medical timeouts and a complete reversal of tactical momentum. Taking the opening game 21-19, the world No.14 relied on fast front-court coverage and steep, angled half-smashes to keep the athletic American at bay. Following the gruelling decider, where Sen fought back from 11-4 down to bring the score to 17-16 before errors cost him the final stretch, the Indian required immediate medical attention for bruises sustained from multiple full-court dives before addressing the media.
“It was a very tough match, a hard-fought match. I gave my all, whatever I had in my tank. “I will give a lot of credit to him, he played a solid game. I am a little disappointed, though I gave my all in the end it wasn’t enough. “He was quite dominant. I was always playing cover-up. I had my chances, but he was taking the points and I was playing under pressure a lot of times. “The rallies were long and the drift was not playing a big role. He was quite solid on his defence and attack, so I wasn’t getting many chances. It is a big tournament, so it hurts more, but we have some big tournaments coming up, so I will prepare for those. The match hit a brief moment of concern when Tan dived for the shuttle and bumped his head, experiencing mild dizziness, but his bench stepped in during the pause to reset his focus.
I was also exhausted physically in the third game,” Sen said in the mixed zone. Addressing his tactical struggles throughout the contest, Sen said that Tan’s aggressive length kept him perpetually on the back foot. All the games were close, so I don’t think there was any clear advantage,” said Sen. Lynn said that Tan’s ability to maintain focus and handle the pressure here was immensely impressive, praising his dedication as a “hard-working, God-fearing athlete”.
He was just a better player today.
